National Briefing | Washington: Supreme Court Considers Tobacco Case

Published: September 30, 2005

The Supreme Court will consider whether to hear the government's request that it reinstate a potential $280 billion penalty against cigarette makers. In February, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit barred the government from seeking past tobacco profits as a legal remedy for decades of fraud accusations involving the tobacco industry. The decision took away the government's biggest weapon in the landmark case.